Last year's hurricanes and the...

- DISASTER LOSSESVICTIMS OF

VICTIMS OF last year's hurricanes and the dozens of other federally designated disasters of the past year have a decision to make this tax season.

Uninsured losses from last year's federal disaster areas can be claimed on 1995 income-tax returns or by filing an amended return for 1994.

To determine which choice is best, you'll need to calculate the effect of deducting the losses on each year's tax return to see which provides the greatest tax savings.

If you decide to claim the loss on your 1994 return, you will need to file an amended return by this April 15 - even if you get a filing extension for your 1995 return.

The tax law gives victims of presidentially declared disaster areas the option of claiming losses on tax returns for the tax year immediately preceding the disaster so they can get a quick refund to help repair their property. As a result, victims of this year's major federal disasters, such as the floods in the Northeast, have the option of deducting losses on their 1995 returns instead of having to wait until next year when they file their 1996 return.

This dual option is available only for losses sustained in a federally designated disaster area. If you had flooding in your basement last year from a storm that wasn't a presidentially declared disaster, the loss can only be written off on your 1995 tax return.

For those who suffer losses, the tax code provides only limited relief. Unreimbursed losses are deductible only if you itemize and only to the extent they exceed 10 percent of your adjusted gross income. The first $100 in losses for each disaster is also nondeductible.

- RETIREMENT PLANNING

INDIVIDUALS WHO reached age 70 1/2 last year must start making withdrawals from their individual retirement accounts, self-employed Keogh plans, and other tax-favored retirement plans in the next few weeks.

The tax law requires distributions from retirement plans to begin no later than April 1 following the year you turn age 70 1/2 .

Failing to make sufficient withdrawals by the deadline can bring one of the tax code's stiffest penalties: 50 percent of the amount that should have been withdrawn but wasn't.

You don't have to withdraw the money all at once. Withdrawals can be made over a period of years based on your life expectancy. If you have indicated an IRA beneficiary, you can use joint life-expectancy tables to figure the distributions.

Under a Congressional proposal, employees who continue to work past the age of 70 1/2 wouldn't have to starting making retirement plan withdrawals until after they retire. But that provision was included in the GOP tax plan that was recently vetoed by President Clinton.

- FAMILY LEAVE

EMPLOYEES AT larger companies now have the right to up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave a year to care for a new baby, a sick relative, or for the employee's own ''serious health condition.''

But workers at most companies shouldn't count on being able to take 12 weeks of leave a year on top of their vacation and sick leave. Under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, companies have the right to offset the 12 weeks by any paid vacation days or other personal leave accrued by the employee. And most employers have decided to exercise that right in developing their leave policies, according to a survey of nearly 1,000 employers.

For example, if you wanted to take five weeks off to care for a sick relative and you had two weeks of paid vacation built up but hadn't used, your employer can count the first two weeks of your family leave against your unused vacation. You'll receive pay for the two weeks, but you lose the vacation days.

Fewer than one in four companies allow employees to take unpaid family leave in addition to their vacation and other paid leave, according to the survey by Hewitt Associates, a benefits consulting firm based in Lincolnshire, Ill.

At nearly half the companies surveyed, unpaid family leave is offset by all forms of paid leave - including vacation, sick time and disability leave. At another 14 percent of companies, family leave is offset by only sick and disability leave. At 7 percent of companies, family leave is offset only by paid vacation time.

- SALARIES

FOR COLLEGE students, the choice of which field to major in often is influenced by the potential financial rewards. A new Census Bureau survey of worker salaries provides an indication of what college graduates can expect to earn during their careers.

For those with a bachelor's degree, which is where most college students end their formal education, average annual salaries varied widely by field.